1 . I've been really lucky this year. Not only did I have the opportunity to live in France, but 1 was able to see some other countries with my girlfriend. Now she is studying in Essen, a large city in Western Germany. I recently went to stay with her----it was my first visit to Germany! Essen is a very large city. It has all the conveniences of any large city so I felt immediately at home. I love the variety of shops, restaurants, shopping malls, cocktail bars, nightclubs, parks and even a lake. There is also a city-wide network of trams（有轨电车）, which makes getting around a piece of cake!...

I found the people to be really friendly, and most Germans speak very good English, which made life easy for me. I was surprised by the casual attitude to alcohol in Germany, where it seems normal for people to drink beer on the street or on the tram. My girlfriend and I visited two famous local cities. Dusseldorf and Cologne, which are both on the Rhine River. Dusseldorf is an urban metropolis with a great variety of restaurants. We took a boat tour on the river and went up the Rhine tower, a really tall building which offers great views across the city. Cologne, as you might know, is world famous for its perfumes. The cathedral（大教堂）there is an unmissable landmark. We made the effort to climb to the top of one of the cathedrals tower, The spiral（螺旋的）stairs seemed endless. but it was worthwhile for the impressive sights from the top.

We also went in a cable car over the river and tasted a German delicacy called "Spaghettieis” which is ice cream with strawberry sauce! I also got to try the famous German sausage. I must admit, I really enjoyed the food! The only disappointment was the grey and rainy weather, which proves that Britain does not have the worst weather in Europe!

1. Why did the writer feel lucky this year?

A．He will have a chance to live in Germany.

B．He met his girlfriend in France by chance.

C．He got an opportunity of learning in Germany.

D．He was able to live in France and visit other countries.

2. What do Dusseldorf and Cologne have in common?

A．They are both famous for unique perfumes.

B．They both serve traditional German sausage.

C．They both have many towers with a long history.

D．The both offer wonderful views from the tower top.

3. According to the writer, which country has the worst weather in Europe?

A．Britain

B．Italy

C．Germany

D．France

4. What can be the best title of the passage?

A．Mt first visit to Germany

B．A Brief Introduction of Germany

C．A Guide to the Germany

D．An Unforgettable Trip

2 . 阅读下面的短文，按照句子结构的语法性和上下文连贯的要求，在空格处填入一个适当的词或使用括号中词语的正确形式填空。

Chengdu has dozens of new millionaires, Asia’s biggest building, and fancy new hotels. But for tourists like me, pandas are its top     1    (attract).

So it was a great honour to be invited backstage at the not-for-profit Panda Base, where ticket money helps pay for research. I     2    (allow) to get up close to these cute animals at the 600-acre centre. From tomorrow, I will be their UK ambassador. The title will be     3    (official) given to me at a ceremony in London. But my connection with pandas goes back     4     my days on a TV show in the mid-1980s,     5     I was the first Western TV reporter     6    (permit) to film a special unit caring for pandas rescued from starvation in the wild. My ambassadorial duties will include     7    (introduce) British visitors to the 120-plus pandas at Chengdu and others at a research centre in the misty mountains of Bifengxia.

On my recent visit, I held a lively three-month-old twin that had been rejected by     8    (it) mother. The nursery team switches him every few     9    (day) with his sister so that while one is being bottle-fed,     10     other is with mum—she never suspects.

3 . 语法填空。
It was raining lightly when I     1    (arrive) in Yangshuo just before dawn. But I didn’t care. A few hours     2    , I’d been at home in Hong Kong, with     3    (it) choking smog. Here, the air was clean and fresh, even with the rain.
I’d skipped nearby Guilin, a dream place for tourists seeking the limestone mountain tops and dark waters of the Li River     4     are pictured by artists in so many Chinese     5    (painting). Instead, I ‘d head straight for Yangshuo. For those who fly to Guilin, it’s only an hour away     6     car and offers all the scenery of the better-known city.
Yangshuo     7    (be) really beautiful. A study of travelers     8    (conduct) by the website TripAdvisor names Yangshuo as one of the top 10 destinations in the world. And the town is fast becoming a popular weekend destination for people in Asia. Abercrombie & Kent, a travel company in Hong Kong, says it     9    (regular) arranges quick getaways here for people     10    (live) in Shanghai and Hong Kong.